Page 53 of Nightshade

Stepping back, I searched out the eyes of the wolves who’d seen me. Most were coming from the worksite.

Aleks was rushing into the square, calling for Katya, who came out onto the porch with a worried frown.

I licked my teeth clean as Evie shook herself and stood up on four legs. She seemed all right, perhaps recovered already if she’d been harmed at all, but I inched away from her.

I expected her to flee from me, shrink at the blood on my lips, but she padded forward. When I extended my hand, she sniffed at my fingers and pressed into my hand.

My chest gave a hard squeeze, and I scratched her ear. “Thank you,” I whispered.

Maybe it was just a young girl who’d defended me, but she had. She’d been willing to fight for me, and that knowledge alone was humbling.

On the other side of the porch, there was a sound, a warning growl. Leo led the other witch around. The witch’s whole body was shuddering as he crawled across the ground. Grimacing, he lifted his head. I remembered him from the coven house—Tristan, I thought. But he’d never come to me the way others had. When he laid eyes on me, saw his companion dead at my feet, he flinched. He shoved up onto his knees, hissing a curse.

Leo, behind him, didn’t see the movement right off. A split second’s confusion almost allowed the witch his freedom—at least to cast another spell. I didn’t think he’d make it out of the werewolves’ territory alive, but me? If the light that grew from his palms meant anything, I suspected I’d be a pillar of ash in about three seconds.

Evie yelped, struggling to shove me out of the way as I tried to get her behind me. I staggered to the side, unsure what to do. Did I run toward the witch, attack him, try to defend this place?

Had I already spilled too much blood here?

Before I could decide, a three-legged wolf bounded through the air. I didn’t know how he’d managed to get such height with just one back leg, but he sailed past me and over Evie, sinking his fangs into the witch casting his spell.

The witch shrieked, jerking at his arm, but the wolf’s bite was too fierce, and he wasn’t letting go. The wolf swung through the air and hit the ground on three legs, pulling the his quarry over, bitten arm still trapped in his jaws.

The witch hit the ground screaming. He pulled his arm to his chest, but it didn’t matter. Whether his magic would wither, or his life would, it was too late to do anything about it.

“Pa!” Cash cried, rushing past Aleks and Viktor, both still on two feet. He ran through the new square to kneel at his father’s side, but the wolf who’d attacked had faced no violence. He wasn’t harmed at all.

With the witch at his side, he sat upright, calm and patient.

I wouldn’t have been so fearless to sit beside my enemy, but this wolf was. He didn’t attack the witch again and ignored him entirely as he lay there whimpering and clutching his bloody arm.

After a moment, he nudged Cash toward Evie, sending him over to run his hands through her thick gray fur to check for injuries.

“You’re okay?” he asked.

She yipped. Her tongue lolled out of her mouth, her eyes sparkling with victory as she looked at me like we’d . . . like we’d done something good.

This was pack—the protection, working together to take care of each other.

And for one reason or another, they’d saved me too.

Viktor’s glare, however, said he was none too pleased about it.

CHAPTER 27

Leo

Shit.

Fuck my entire life. Viktor was never going to let me hear the end of this. Forcing Henry to shift and protect the pack, because I’d failed to do it myself?

Weakness, he would call it, because I hadn’t just torn the asshole’s throat out right away. And maybe he was right.

Instead of me, though, Viktor was glaring at Altair, because of course he was.

I had to look around to figure out why he was actually doing it: the other witch I’d seen had puncture wounds on her neck, and she was dead.

Seriously? So I was gonna be in trouble for not killing someone, and Altair was in trouble for killing someone? Not cool.